Sasquatch! Sunday night: Death Cab for Cutie and The Cure

What a difference it makes when it doesn’t rain! You want to stick around all night, and it was worth it to hear nearly three hours of The Cure, including a seven-song encore that included such early songs as “Grinding Halt” and “Boys Don’t Cry.”

But before that, the sold-out audience (22,000) enjoyed audience favorite Death Cab for Cutie, hipster royalty whose lead singer, chatty Ben Gibbard, made his already skinny stature even more so with the slimming all-black outfit he wore. He went into Goth mode for two reasons: 1) “Because black is what I feel on the inside,” and 2) “I’m so god-damned excited to see The Cure tonight, you wouldn’t believe it.”

He dedicated “I Will Follow You into the Dark” to The Cure.

A lot of us were there to see the God to the Goths, The Cure’s lead singer, Robert Smith, the man who’s embraced depression and spun it into a worldwide obsession for fans for the past 30 years.

But back to Gibbard, who roused fans with radio hit “Soul Meets Body,” with lyrics like, “You’re the only song I want to hear/Melody softly soaring through my atmosphere.”

Shane Dowaliby, 18 of Whitefish, Mont., — a student at Montana State — single-handedly used his energy and charisma to gather a line of fans stretching from one end of the lawn to more than half-way across in a human chain that danced, then hugged and swayed to Death Cab, which cranked out its brand of indie pop rock for its set, including recent single, “I Will Possess Your Heart.”

“You know you’re at a very unusual setting when you’re having a conversation with Tegan & Sara’s mom about ‘Juno’ setting me in my place,” Gibbard said. “But now that she’s gone, I can say, I would like that movie, but I don’t. This one’s for Tegan & Sara’s and their very persuasive mother.” The song he chose: “The Sound of Settling.”

Then The Cure came on and right away, it was apparent we weren’t going to get the super furry friendly Smith of “Why Can’t I Be You” or (gag) “Friday I’m in Love.” No, this was the Smith who’s endeared himself to legions of angsty, depressed teens (and adults) for decades. Unlike other performers who pranced and lunged around the stage, Smith channeled statue behind the mic, letting his voice do all the work, and it did, holding up surprisingly well after all these years.

In high school, I listened to the band’s singles collection, “Standing on a Beach,” probably every day for months my sophomore year. I wanted that whole album to be played live, but what are you gonna do? I frakkin’ love The Cure, so I’m OK with the heavy side of the band, the singles that make you feel like every day is winter in Seattle. But a lot of people left the lawn mid-way through its nearly three-hour set. “A Night Like This,” “The End of the World,” and “To Wish Impossible Things” set the mood, but as the night wore on, Smith revved up, rewarding fans with “Lovesong,” “Pictures of You,” “Fascination Street,” “Hot! Hot! Hot!” In-between Days” and “Just Like Heaven.”

The rest of the band — the Utilikilted guitarist Porl Thompson (who looked like he stepped out of a Goth movie), bassist Simon Gallup and drummer Jason Cooper — also played down their roles, giving the show a feel of older shows where bands didn’t banter; they just played.

We stuck around for the encore, which featured seven songs that transported us back to the late 1970s and early 80s, including “Boys Don’t Cry,” “Jumping Someone Else’s Train,” “Grinding Halt,” “10:15 Saturday Night,” and “Killing An Arab” (which might not sound so PC, but it’s based on Albert Camus’ “The Stranger”).